Turkey temporarily suspends human rights convention after failed coup

Strasbourg, July 22 (IANS) The Turkish government notified the Strasbourg-based Council of Europe (CoE) on Thursday that it intends to temporarily suspend the European Convention on Human Rights in the country.

Officially, the Turkish authorities have notified CoE Secretary-General Thorbjorn Jagland that Turkey will “notify its derogation” under Article 15 of the Convention, Xinhua reported.

The possibility of temporarily suspending the convention is provided for by Article 15 in times of public emergency “threatening the life of a nation”. It has been used in the past by other member states, most recently by France and Ukraine.

However, there are conditions that must still be met, including the right to life and a prohibition against torture and inhumane treatment. Also, no punishment can be issued without due legal process.

The CoE said it was important to note that the human rights convention will continue to apply in Turkey.

“Where the Government seeks to invoke Article 15 in order to derogate from the convention in individual cases, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) will decide whether the application meets the criteria set out in the convention, notably the criteria of proportionality of the measure taken,” a CoE statement said.

Turkey first joined the CoE, which oversees the ECHR in 1950, making it one of the oldest signatories among the 47 members.

Jagland said the Turkish government would continue to inform him about the measures taken.

The move follows the attempted coup on Friday. Military and police personnel, as well as thousands of civil servants and teachers, have either been arrested or removed from their posts since the failed coup.